Stay-bolt breaker.



A. STERNER. STAY BOLT BREAKER. APPLIUATION FILED Nov. 1, 1909.

' Patented-July12,191(

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A. STERNER.

STAY BOLT BREAKER. APPLICATION rum) nov.1, 190a.

Patented July 12,1910. I

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v VI/IIII/I EBH wwwwifi 8 m WM fill 14A ALFRED STERNER, OF CHICAGO,ILLINOIS.

STAY-BOLT BREAKER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED STERNER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Stay-Bolt Breakers, ofwhich the following is a specification.

In locomotive boilers the interior wall adjacent to the fire box isattached to the outer wall by metallic stay-bolts which it is necessaryto remove whenever replacement of the interior wall, which wears muchmore rapidly than the exterior wall, is necessary.

This invention consists in a machine capable of being mounted at one endof the boiler for the purpose of successively cutting away or breakingall the stay-bolts which are in the path of the device.

The object of this invention is to provide such a device which can bereadily mounted in position ready to out or break stay-bolts; which willperform its work easily and efliciently with a great saving of labor andwhich is not liable to get out of order under the difierent conditionsof service.

The invention consists in the whole device, capable of carrying out theforegoing objects, to be hereafter described and claimed.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the preferredform of the device of this invention in working position adjacent to aboiler whose stay-bolts are to be broken or cut. Fig. 2 is a plan viewof the parts illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical centralsectional detail view through the principal parts illustrated in Fig. 1.Fig. at is a perspective detail view of the cutting tool. Fig. 5 is asectional detail view on the line 55, Fig. 3. Figs. 6, 7 and 8 aresectional detail views on the lines bearing corresponding numerals inFig. 3. Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view through the hammercorresponding to the right hand portion of Fig. 3, showing the hammer,piston and valves in a difierent position.

As shown inFig. 1, two parallel guiding track members 10 and 11,preferably made of good size piping or the like, are con nected togetherby suitable spacing members Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 1, 1309.

Patented July 12, 1910.

Serial No. 525,775.

12, 13 and lt, the upper ends of the spacing members being provided withloops 15, 16 and 17 to which suspending chains 18, 19 and 20 areattached for the purpose of bolding the device, as shownin Figs. 1 and2, in front of the boiler, consisting of an outer plate 22, and an innerplate 23 connected together by a plurality of vertical rows of rivets orstay-bolts, 24;, 25, 26, 27, etc.

Rigidly attached to or mounted at the rear of track members 10 in thespacing members 12 and 13 by any suitable device is a hollow drivingcylinder 30 within which is slidably mounted a piston 31, whose pistonrod 32 passes through a stufiingbox device 33 of ordinary constructiontoward the forward or working end of the machine. At opposite ends ofthis cylinder 30 are ports or passageways 35 and 36 at opposite ends ofair pipe 37 in turn connected to a supply pipe in which is a three-wayvalve 39, of ordinary construction operated by a handle 40 or othersuitable device, adapted to be operated so that, by rotating this handleL0 through onehundred and eighty degrees, compressed air, provided byany suitable source of supply, not shown, may be admitted from the valveto either end of the cylinder 30, as desired, or may be shut offentirely.

At the end of the stuffing-box 33 heretofore described is a cushioningdevice, in the particular case here illustrated a large piece of rubber42. At the forward end of the piston rod 32 is a ball 43 forming a partof a ball and socket joint within the cap 14 screw threaded upon the endportion 4L5 of cylinder head 46 to be hereafter described. This ball andsocket joint serves to allow the parts connected to the driving cylinderto drive the stay-bolt breaking tool forward without undue strain,should some deviation from alinement of the parts occur. At the forwardend of the device is a cylinder .7 which will for convenience be calledthe hammer-cylinder, having at one end the removable cylinder head 46heretofore referred to and at the opposite end a cylinder head or end 48which may be made integral with the walls of the cylinder, if desired.

Through this cylinder end 48 the extreme end portion 49 of the toolshank or rod 50 passes, and is held in position by any suitable clampingdevice such as 52 embracing a flange 58 upon the tool shaft and a flange54 upon the cylinder end. These parts may be made in one piece ifdesired. This hammer cylinder L7 and attached parts just described issuspended or slung upon the rods 10 and 11 by means of supportingmembers 56 and 57 slidably mounted in bearing members 58 and 59 upon therespective rods 10 and 11. At the outer end of the member 50 heretoforedescribed is a cutting or breaking tool or hammer 60, best seen in Fig.4, of such a length that it can engage and cut successively horizontalrows of rivets 24:, 25, 26, 27, etc.

7 From the foregoing it will readily be seen that by admitting airthrough the valve 39 to the left hand side of piston 31, as viewed inFig. 3, the piston will be moved to the right in Fig. 3 with the resultthat the for ward or hammer cylinder 47 and attached parts will slide inbearings 58 and 59 to the right along the rods 10 and 11 and that byreversing the position of handle 40 and admitting air to the right handside of piston 31 the parts will be moved in a reverse direction andthat if this motion takes place too quickly the cylinder 47 is cushionedby rubber block 42 when member 4-4 strikes it. In other words, by meansof valve 39 the operator can force the tool 60 to move in eitherdirection, as desired, transversely to the rows of rivets or stay-boltsin the boiler.

As mere moving the tool (30 along the rows of rivets under directpressure of the cylinder 31 is not sufficient to sever the staybolts apneumatic hammer device is pro vided within the cylinder 47 foroperating this tool 60 like an ordinary pneumatic hammer tool so as tocut the staybolts. This pneumatic hammer device consists in placingwithin the cylinder 47 a piston 62 provided with a central passageway 63having a central port opening 64: and side port openings (35 and 66. Onthe interior of the cylinder and projecting into it is an annular bandof metal 68 of exactly the same width as the distance between thecenters of the ports and 66. Immediately adjacent to this ring (38,which is, as stated, of less diameter than the bore of the cylinder, isan annular recess 70 of greater diameter than that of the cylinder sothat, as shown, there is always an air space in said recess surroundingthe cylinder. This recess 70 is entered by a port or passageway 71 towhich a hand valve 72 connected at its opposite end to a pipe 73 leadingto any suitable source of compressed air supply is attached. The piston(32 is of such a length that, as shown in Fig. 3, its forward end 74strikes against the rear end of the tool member 49. When the parts arein this position a shoulder 75 on the cylinder is at such a distancefrom the rear wall of ring 68 that a space is formed between theshoulder 75 and ring 68 and in communication with recess 70. The resultof this construction is that when the parts are in the position of Fig.3 and air is admitted from the valve 72 to space 70 the compressed airhas a chance to engage the vertical front face of shoulder 75 and thusdrive the piston (32 from the position of Fig. 3 to that of Fig. 9. Asthe parts approach this latter position, that is to say, as the port 65passes the corner ofring 68 it comes in communication with the air inspace 70 with the result that said air passes through passageway 65 andpassageway 63 out of port 6 L into the space 82 at the rear of thecylinder in which it engages the rear end 83 of the cylinder and startsto drive it forward or toward the position of that in Fig. 3. As thismotion takes place and the port 65 passes the corner 80 heretoforereferred to, the air in space 82 acts by expansion in the ordinarymanner and continues to drive the piston to the position of Fig. 3. Asit reaches this position it strikes a hard blow against the end of toolrod 4.9 which blow is communicated to the cutting edge (30 in contactwith the staybolts. As it approaches this last named position of Fig. 3the port or passage 66 passes the corner 8% of ring 68 and comes intocommunication with exhaust port 85 so that the air, which has been doingthe work described, in space 82 passes through passageway 63 and port 66out of port 85 and has entirely dissipated its energy before the pistonreaches the position of Fig. 3, in which position air entering space 70is ready to repeat the operation. lVhile there has been air in annularspace 70 during the operation of this forward stroke of the piston theeffective area of the shoulder 75 is so much less than that of the rearend 83 of the piston that the presence of this air has had a negligibleeffect upon the pistonand this condition exists until the air in space82 is exhausted through the port 85 sufiiciently so that the pressure onshoulder 75 becomes great enough to start the piston to the left in Fig.3, as desired.

The hammer just described is automatically oiled by means of an oilreceptacle 88 formed within cylinder head 46 provided with an opening 89through which oil may be placed within said receptacle and with adischarge valve 90 mounted in stuflingbox 92, the end of said valvebeing engaged by the end 83 of the piston 62 at each stroke of thepiston to drive it to the left, sufficiently to permit a small quantityof oil to pass series from the recess or receptacle 88 into the space 82of the cylinder where it comes in contact with and'oils the piston 82.This valve is kept in its proper position at all times by the action ofthe air within the device.

In order that the machine described may be held in engagement with thework a detachable connecting plate or member 94 is provided, the samebeing attached to the boiler by bolts 95 and to connecting member 14: bybolts 96.

In the claims the word breaking will unless otherwise specified be usedto include cutting or otherwise rendering the stay-bolts in removablecondition.

In the complete operation of the device the workman mounts the mechanismin front of the row of stay-bolts to be cut, but with the cylinder e7 insuch a position that piston 31 is at the extreme left hand end of itsstroke, with the parts 42 and 4.4. in substantial contact with eachother and the tool 60 in engagement with one bolt in the first row ofstay-bolts 24 which is to be cut. The operator now admits air both tothe port 35 of cylinder 80 and through the valve 72.

-The pressure of air in the cylinder 30 holds the tool 60 in contactwith this first stay-bolt which is to be out, while the cuttingoperation takes place by the hammering of the tool 60 in the mannerdescribed. As soon as the first stay-bolt is cut through, the pressureof air in cylinder 30 causes the cylinder 47 and all attached parts tomove to the right until the tool 60 comes in contact with the next boltin the next vertical row of staybolts 25 and the operation is repeateduntil the device reaches the position actually shown in Fig. 1 in whichthe tool 60 is just ready to cut the last bolt 27. When this has beendone the operator reverses valve 39 so that air is admitted to theopposite side of the cylinder 31 and thereby forcibly pulls tool 60 outof contact with and clear of the staybolts previously cut. The operatornow removes bolts 95 and by adjusting the chains 18, 19 and 20 upward ordownward by any well known mechanism, not shown, brings the tool 60 incontact with the next horizontal row of stay-bolts above or below thatone previously cut or broken; the bolts 95 are again inserted and theoperation is repeated.

The straps 12 and 13 heretofore referred to are adjustable along therods 10 and 11 by selectively inserting the bolts or pins 100 whichsecure them to rods 10 and 11 in other holes 101, 102, 103, 10 1, 105,provided for the purpose in said rods 10 and 11, as shown. By makingthis adjustment the length of cutting tool 50 may be varied asnecessary. It should be noted that, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, theshaft of cutting tool 50 passes through a hole 106 in spacin member I l,the shaft 50 being thus gui ed and supported against excessive side playby the edges of this hole.

The claims are 1. In a device of the class described, the combination oftwo parallel track members, means for supporting said track members insubstantial alinement with a row of stay bolts to be broken, means forrigidly securing one end of the track in said position, a cylindersecured to said track members at a distance from the bolts to be broken,a piston in said cylinder provided with a piston rod extending in thedirection of the bolts to be broken, means for admitting gas to eitherside of said cylinder so as to selectively force the piston in eitherdirection, a second cylinder slidably mounted on said track membersbetween the first cylinder and the bolts to be broken rigidly connectedto the outer end of said piston rod, a pneumatic hammer device in saidsecond cylinder and a cutting tool, operated by said hammer device,projecting from the second cylinder into engagement with the stay boltsto be cut for the purposes set forth.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination of two paralleltrack members, means for supporting said track members in substantialalinement with a row of stay bolts to be broken, means for rigidlysecuring one end of the track in said position, a cylinder detachablysecured to said track members at a selected distance from the bolts tobe broken, a piston in said cylinder provided with a piston rodextending in the direction of the bolts to be broken, means foradmitting gas to either side of said cylinder so as to selectively forcethe piston in either direction, a second cylinder slidably mounted onsaid track members between the first cylinder and the bolts to be brokenrigidly connected to the outer end of said piston rod, a pneumatichammer device in said second cylinder and a cutting tool, operated bysaid hammer device, projecting from the second cylinder into engagementwith the stay bolts to be cut for the purposes set forth.

3. In a device of the class described, the combination of two paralleltrack members, means for supporting said track members in substantialalinement with a row of stay bolts to be broken, means for rigidlysecuring one end of the track in said position, a cylinder secured tosaid track members at a distance from the bolts to be broken, a pistonin said cylinder provided with a piston rod extending in the directionof the bolts to be broken, means for admitting gas to either side ofsaid cylinder so as to selectively force the piston in either direction,a second cylinder slidably mounted 011 said track members between thefirst cylinder and which are adjacent to the staybolts to be 10 broken,for the purposes set forth.

In Witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presenceof tWo Witnesses.

ALFRED STERNER. l/Vitnesses:

DWIGHT B. CHEEVER, MARGARET D. RoBB.

